re: Audiophile/Vinyl Thread - Post Pics, Advice, Questions, Setups, etc.

All of that is completely out of my depth , but sounds like a fun project.

Keep us updated.

QUESTION: I broke the stylus to my Grado Prestige Blue2 cartridge over the weekend. Is it possible to replace just the stylus without having to buy a whole new cart? If so, what stylus should I get?

On now...

Just saw this—from AudioGon...and from Baton Rouge...a good deal on a great phono stage...

Lehman Decade Phono Stage

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Brothers and Sisters

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Aahhh...CD memory lane...a bit of history...



The first Allmans CD I bought back in 1985 was Brothers and Sisters...by the end of 1986 I had just about all of them on CD, as well as Greg solos, Duane Anthologies, Dickie Betts side stuff...became an Allmans junkie.

When I started buying CDs, there was just a small bin in Warehouse Records & Tapes on Vets in Metry, but they had some great classic rock and a good bit of classical.

My first 2 CDs I bought in 1983 were The Fixx—“Reach the Beach” and a John Williams soundtrack compilation/sampler called “Star Tracks” which had selections from Star Wars, Star Trek, and Close Encounters.

I cut grass all summer, and with a bit of help from my dad (an audio/gadget guy as well), I bought the first commercially available CD player...


the Sony CDP-101...



Then moved to a Sony CDP-C30 (carousel)...



Then a Sony CDP-X7ESD...



Then an Adcom GCD-575...



Then a Sony XA7ES...



Then a Sony SCD-777ES (SACD)...



Then a Simaudio Supernova...



...and now a McIntosh MCT-450 transport (SACD)...





The Sony “ES” players in the “X” and “XA” series were at the top of the chain for Sony (the “7”, “77”, and “777”), and were Reference level players from around 1987 to 2003.

The “5” series “X” (“5”, “55” and “555”) were the middle of the ES line.

The “3” series “X” were the entry point to the “ES” CD players—and the “3” series were by no means slouches—they were still better than most commercially available players.


The best overall, IMO, is the Simaudio Supernova (redbook CD only, but has a line in to use its DAC), followed by the Sony SCD-777ES (SACD player)...both over 40 lbs. of craftsmanship and high end parts.


The beauty of the Sony “ES” CD players is that they were not only built like tanks with great drives/transports, but most also had digital outputs (the Japs future proofed them)...so as chipsets evolved over the years, you could still use these players as transports only, by using its digital coax “out” from the player to a modern-day DAC...this is why these 20-30 year old units still command a high price used...they were that good!

More classic digital eye candy from Sony...the R line...

Back in the late ‘80’s, Sony really owned the digital high end world. Their technology was second to none, and if you had the means to afford the best, they made it possible with the introduction of the “R” Series in 1987.

The first digital separates, consisting of a separate transport and DAC, was the CDP-R1a transport and the DAS-R1a DAC. They were massive, heavy, and had specs that wouldn’t reach the “ES” line for a few years.

...and they were expensive...the combo was $8000 in 1987!...production numbers are estimated at around 1500 each worldwide.

The Sony CDP-R1a transport...




...and the DAS-R1a DAC...




And if that wasn’t high end enough, in 1992 Sony decided to update these with the new CDP-R10 transport and the DAS-R10 DAC—and that combo would set you back almost $27,000 in 1992!! They are stunningly beautiful, and were produced in extremely low numbers—less than 250 worldwide. They are just about unobtanium on the used market today.

The Sony CDP-R10 transport...




...and the DAS-R10 DAC...




Sony also made matching reference “R” Series power amplifiers (TA-NR1 and the TA-NR10) and a pre-amplifier (TA-ER1) for which to feed this ultra signal through...and they too were insanely expensive and produced in very low numbers.

The TA-NR1 mono, Class A 100wpc power amp...($12,000/pr. in 1987)



The TA-NR10 mono, Class A 100wpc power amp...($27,000/pr. in 1992)



The TA-ER1 pre-amp...($13,500 in 1987)

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I don't own any Grado carts, but it looks like you can buy a replacement stylus that you can slide in yourself. I looked it up on Needle Doctor, but you should be able to find them on most music sites. I had to replace a stylus on my Rega cart and used a service that replaced the stylus for me because it wasn't plug and play.

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I did find the proper replacement stylus for the Grado, but it was like $80.00--nearly as much as a new cartridge. I went ahead and bought the Ortofon OM Pro S. Don't know much about it, but it has good reviews on Amazon. It comes pre-mounted on a new headshell. Ortofon OM Pro S

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Welcome aboard.

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My daughter came out to my "studio" (I am in process of reclaiming the shop in my garage as the "music studio") and was she was amazed how music could come out of a spinning turntable.. it's magic!! She also loved the concept of listening to sides of an album while reading the album covers, checking out the artwork and notes on the sleeves.

Oh and who is this band called... YES!!

ElMatadorr,

Get the Grado replacement stylus and return the OM S if you can.

Give me a day to refresh my memory on the Grado line...I’ll respond with a few suggestions.

What is upper budget limit?